Vitamin B5, also known as pantothenic acid is useful to the body through many ways. It is a member of the nutritionally elite group of eight vitamins collectively known as the Vitamin B complex. This powerful group of vitamins plays a big role nearly in almost every major body system and process. The Vitamin B complex serves to keep both body and mind functioning and to be perpetually in good health.

Vitamin B5 like all of the vitamins that make up the B complex is essential to the body’s ability to use the food that it takes in as fuel for it to able to perform the various tasks that it has lined-up every single day, great and small. It works in the regular maintenance and repair of all bodily tissues from the cellular level up. This makes it an essential part of the body’s efforts to fight the physical damage that excessive stress can cause us to have.

Vitamin B5 serves many important functions in the nervous system especially in terms of nerve function and health. Among the contributions that Vitamin B5 makes to the nervous system is the production of neurotransmitters which are important to the ability of the nerves to communicate properly and effectively.

Because of its important role in the growth and health of the hair and our high regard towards having healthy skin it is used frequently in a variety of cosmetic products. Vitamin B5 acting as a cofactor to other members of the Vitamin B complex and other nutrients has an important role in how the adrenal glands properly functions and also serves to promote normal growth of the body due to its big role in hormone production throughout the body.

Deficiency in Vitamin B5 can have a variety of negative consequences for the body as well as in one’s mind. Symptoms of physical malfunctions brought about by lack of Vitamin B5 include fatigue, headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, weakened immune system, abdominal pain, neurological disorders, muscle weakness and cramps, increased insulin sensitivity, acne, digestive problems and slow or retarded growth.

Symptoms of a break down in a person’s mental capabilities which can be brought about from a lack of Vitamin B5 include depression, personality disorders and change, sleep disturbances and insomnia - which if not attended to immediately and cured, can actually pose as a bigger problem since insomnia can actually cause far greater problems to a person who is already suffering from poor mental health. In general adults should have about 5mg of Vitamin B5 per day with women increasing their daily intake to 6mg to 7mg while they’re pregnant or breastfeeding. Children, depending on their size and weight should have about 2mg to 4mg of Vitamin B5 each day.

The importance of the Vitamin B complex to good physical health and proper mental functioning needs to be taught better to people so as to be able to educate them of what they’ve been neglecting for so long. For a person to be able to fully utilize not only his physical capabilities but the power of his or her own mind as well, including cognitive functions and emotional responses and stability the standard recommended daily intake levels of these vitamins should be met every single day. Because these are water-soluble vitamins they are washed away daily with the urine and thus the body’s supply of these essential nutrients must be renewed daily.

Nutritional supplements are a reliable and safe way to meet these important nutritional goals provided that proper attention is given to the accepted limits of dosage. Too much of any nutrient can be toxic and can often cause as much damage as having too little. The body is a delicately balanced system and that balance requires to be maintained to function at its best.

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Charlene J. Nuble 2005. For up to date links and information about Vitamins, please go to: http://vitamins.besthealthlink.net/ or for updated links and information on all health related topics, go to: http://www.besthealthlink.net/

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